If pitching is the key to winning championships, the LSU baseball team should be in pretty good shape.
Now granted it is early in the season and the Tigers have not faced the type of quality Southeastern Conference competition they will face later in the season, beginning this weekend at South Carolina.
Statistically, the Gamecocks (18-0) have the best pitching in the league with a team ERA of 1.68. One starter, Matt Campbell, has not given up a run in 27 1/3 innings of work, during four starts, and he has 43 strikeouts.
But if South Carolina’s pitching is any better than LSU’s staff, it will take some strong evidence to convince me otherwise.
I guess that’s why they play the game on the field and not on paper, and this weekend will be a key indicator of who has the most dominant pitching in the SEC.
As good as South Carolina’s arms are, the Tigers are even better.
LSU carries a 1.86 ERA and has four of the best starters in the SEC.
It all begins on Friday nights with Justin Meier. Meier is 4-0 with a 1.83 ERA and he really hasn’t even gotten going yet.
Meier said Wednesday he has yet to find his groove but is getting closer. He leads the team with 34 1/3 innings pitched and opponents are only hitting .220 against him.
Things don’t get any easier on Saturday with Lane Mestepey, who is recovering nicely from sitting out the 2003 season because of an arm injury.
Mestepey is 3-1 with a 2.57 ERA and hasn’t lost the bulldog mentality that helped him earn first team All-SEC honors in 2001 and 2002. Mestepey’s velocity is a little down in the low 80 mph range, but his big key is location and guts.
Mestepey will win because he’s a competitor. With work and more innings pitched, the velocity will get back up and he will be even more difficult to hit.
LSU’s winningest pitcher from the 2003 College World Series team, Nate Bumstead, starts on Sundays for the Tigers. Bumstead, a senior right-hander with a funky delivery and devastating change-up is 2-0 with a 3.18 ERA — the highest on the team.
Poor Nate, I hope the guys don’t rag him too much. Seriously though, Bumstead seems to be getting stronger and stronger with every start and he is a completely different look from what LSU pitchers you see out on Friday and Saturday.
The best pitcher of them all may be the guy is who has been working midweeks for the Tigers, redshirt freshman left-hander Clay Dirks.
Dirks has worked 27 1/3 innings in five starts and is 4-0 with an ERA of 1.32. The Hernando, Miss. native, who has a curve ball that drops off the table, has 27 strikeouts on the year and pitched a complete game shutout against then Top 10-ranked Tulane at Zephyr Field in early March. You can bank on Dirks, who has held opponents to a .190 batting average, being used in the SEC rotation whether starting or in relief.
When Dirks finds his way into the weekend rotation, look for freshman right-hander Michael Bonura to start the midweek games, along with bullpen work on the weekends.
Bonura is 1-0 with a 2.63 ERA and has started one game this season. Bonura has 13 2/3 innings with his only hangup being bouts with wildness. Bonura has 11 walks so far, but he also has 11 strikeouts.
As far as relief pitching goes, there may not be any finer than lefty Jason Determann.
Determann became LSU’s go-to guy down the stretch in 2003 and has continued that trend into this season. Determann is 2-0 with a 0.82 ERA in 11 innings of work and opponents are only hitting .184 against him. Look for Determann to get the ball in the late innings with the game on the line.
Other guys who figure to see innings are left-handed flame-thrower Greg Smith and sidearmer Jordan Faircloth. Smith, who can bring it at about 93 mph, had a 0.73 ERA in 12 1/3 innings and has mowed down batters with 16 strikeouts. In 8 2/3 innings, Faircloth has a 1.04 ERA. He notched a save on Saturday against Southeastern.
LSU coach Smoke Laval also can use Will Harris or Collin Smith in relief if needed.
Hell, LSU may have too much good pitching. The only problem for Laval will be getting all the pitchers enough innings to keep them fresh. But that is a position most coaches would love to be in.